Sarracenia pitcher plant named ‘Redbug’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultvar of Sarracenia called ‘Redbug’ is described that is a vigorously growing, compact plant having pubescent dark Chrysanthemum Crimson (H.C.C. #824) pitchers, suffused with veins of a deeper cast of Chrysanthemum Crimson. The pitcher is distinguished from other Sarracenia by having a higher width-to-length ratio, a wider hood, and a prominent horizontal filament. Furthermore, in the winter the leaves retain color and texture when grown outdoors in United States Department of Agriculture Hardiness Zone 8 or warmer (minimum winter temperature to 10° F.).

LATIN NAME OF THE GENUS AND SPECIES

The Latin name of the novel hybrid plant variety disclosed herein isSarracenia rubra ssp. wherryi×Sarracenia rubra ssp. rubra.

VARIETY DENOMINATION

The inventive cultivar of Sarracenia disclosed herein has been given thevariety denomination ‘Redbug’.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Sarracenia species are long-lived, herbaceous, perennial, insectivorousplants found growing in open, sunny, moist meadows or long-leaf pinesavannas predominantly found throughout the southeastern United States.The plants produce pitchers which are hollow, modified leaves. Eachpitcher has a hood, which typically covers the mouth of the pitcher tokeep rainwater out and insect prey trapped inside. Insects are attractedby the color of the pitchers, the nectar produced around the mouth ofthe pitcher, and the smell of decaying insects within the pitcher. Theability to absorb nutrients from digested insect prey has been shown tosupply necessary nourishment to the roots, stems, and leaves ofSarracenia spp.; and may account for the ability of these plants tothrive predominantly in nutrient-poor acidic soils characteristic of thesoutheastern United States.

Sarracenia pitcher plants have been of horticultural interest for wellover one-hundred years. One problem in the production ofcommerically-available Sarracenia pitcher plants is the lack ofidentified horticulturally superior plants. To meet the current demand,wild species are being harvested, resulting in a depletion of nativepopulations. There are approximately eight species found in the wild,and these species can cross-pollinate to produce fertile hybrids thatgrow well in cultivation. Therefore, it would be desirable to producenew, more robust cultivars of pitcher plants with enhancedcharacteristics such as compact growth, colorful leaves, and winterfoliage to meet the current horticultural demand.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ hybrid plant (Sarracenia rubra ssp.wherryi×Sarracenia rubra ssp. rubra) is a dwarf cultivar with pitcherleaves that are distinctly widened gradually above the middle, thennarrowed somewhat at the mouth of the pitcher. The plant has darkChrysanthemum Crimson (Horticultural Color Chart (H.C.C.). #824) tubularleaves, suffused with veins of a deeper cast of Chrysanthemum Crimson(H.C.C. #824). The pitcher leaves are thick, have very fine but distinctfuzz covering the entire surface, have a width-length ratio of 0.1, andprolonged retention of foliage with attractive leaf color during thedormant season. The hood of Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ completely covers andextends beyond the leaf orifice and often has a slightly scalloped orwavy margin, and a prominent horizontal filament at its tip up to 2 mmlong. Furthermore, this plant is a vigorous, compact grower (short instature with many pitchers), forming a clump from a single crown in onegrowing season with flushes of new pitchers being produced all summer.

Lineage: The ‘Redbug’ cultivar originated as a single hybrid seedling atthe North Carolina Botanical Garden, part of the University of NorthCarolina at Chapel Hill, in the late 1980s. ‘Redbug’ is a hybrid derivedfrom a cross of Sarracenia rubra subspecies rubra (a native dwarfpitcher plant from coastal North Carolina) and Sarracenia rubrasubspecies wherryi, a native species from southeastern Alabama. In 1990,the single individual plant now known as ‘Redbug’ was selected becauseof its multitude of exceptional features, and has been propagatedasexually since that time. While each parental species had only a subsetof horticulturally desirable features, ‘Redbug’ attained the fullcomposite of features including vibrant color, compact growth, andwinter foliage retention. It showed exceptional hybrid vigor and grewwell under a variety of conditions.

Asexual reproduction: Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ was first asexually reproducedat the North Carolina Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill, N.C. by divisionof the rhizome, i.e., clump divison, in 1990. The combination ofcharacteristics disclosed herein for Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ is stablethrough successive generations of asexual reproduction.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a color photograph of a typical specimen of the Sarracenia‘Redbug’ hybrid in the summer receiving full sunlight. Leaves at variousstages of development are presented.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following is a detailed description of the botanical characteristicsof a new and distinct cultivar of Sarracenia plant known by the cultivarname ‘Redbug’, and botanically known as Sarracenia rubra ssp.wherryi×Sarracenia rubra ssp. rubra. All colors cited herein refer tothe Horticultural Colour Chart (H.C.C.) designations, issued by TheBritish Colour Council in collaboration with The Royal HorticulturalSociety. Where dimensions, sizes, colors and other characteristics aregiven, it is to be understood that such characteristics areapproximations or averages set forth as accurately as practicable. Thedescriptions reported herein are from mature specimens that were atleast 12 years old and grown outdoors in full sunlight in Chapel Hill,N.C. or Charlotte, N.C. unless otherwise noted. ‘Redbug’ has not beenobserved under all possible environmental conditions. The appearance mayvary with variations in the environment such as temperature, lightintensity, day length, cultural conditions, and the like.

Growth conditions: Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ is a strong grower and adaptableto pot culture. It prefers 100% full sunlight and warm temperatures tobring out the deepest cast of Chrysanthemum Crimson (H.C.C. #824). Whilenew pitcher leaves may be Scheele's Green (H.C.C #860) at first, theybecome a cardinal Red (H.C.C. #822) color as the leaves develop intomature pitchers (within 3-4 weeks). This trait is most similar to the S.rubra ssp. rubra parent. ‘Redbug’ prefers an acidic, peat-based,constantly-moist soil.

During the winter (or under similar day length and temperatureconditions as experienced during winter), there is a prolonged retentionof foliage, and the leaves maintain color and a fuzzy texture. ‘Redbug’is hardy to United States Department of Agriculture Hardiness Zone 6 (orcolder). The pitchers eventually die down after the prolonged rigors ofwinter weather, but new growth resumes in early to mid-Spring (April inChapel Hill and Charlotte, N.C.) Typical of the S. rubra ssp. rubracomplex, new growth (i.e., new leaves and short growth of the rhizome)continues strongly all summer, stopping in mid-Autumn (October in ChapelHill and Charlotte, N.C.).

Vegetative structures: Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ is a clump-forming herbaceousperennial, growing from a horizontal rhizome that is typicallyapproximately 5 mm in diameter and up to several centimeters long.Typically, thick white roots grow from the base of newer leaves. Acluster of tubular pitcher leaves arises from the growing tip of therhizome. The leaves, at maturity, curve slightly forward and range from15-25 cm tall, with a diameter at the widest point of 1.8-2.8 cm.Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ has a wide pitcher for its length (FIG. 1). Thepitcher averages a width-to-length ratio of 0.1, which is approximatelytwice the width-to length ratios of the parents. A hood covers andextends beyond the orifice of the pitcher, and often has a wavy orslightly scalloped margin. There are no long hairs on the under surfaceof the hood. The hood measures up to 4.0 cm wide and 4.0 cm long, whichis approximately two-times the size of the hood for the parent species.The tip of the hood forms a prominent filament up to 2.0 mm long,usually held horizontally. The leaves are of thick texture, and finelypubescent (like the S. rubra ssp. wherryi parent) on the outside. Therim of the orifice (pitcher mouth) is thick and revolute. There is atypical wing (flattened flange of tissue) along the front side of thesummer-produced pitcher along its entire length, up to 0.5 cm wide (upto 1.5 cm wide on young spring leaves) that is the same color as thetube. Furthermore, there are no winter phyllodia (non-pitcher leaves)produced by ‘Redbug’ as may be found in some species not in theSarracenia rubra complex (for example, in S. flava, S. leucophylla, andS. oreophylla, and their hybrids).

Pitcher leaf coloration: FIG. 1 shows the distinctive coloration of atypical ‘Redbug’ specimen in the summer and in full sun. The rim of theorifice is dark Chrysanthemum Crimson (H.C.C #824) on the front portionand Sap Green (H.C.C. #62) on the back portion. The rim of the S. rubrassp. rubra parent is Currant Red (H.C.C. #821) all around; the S. rubrassp. wherryi parent is Sap Green (H.C.C. #62) all around the rim. Theupper three-quarters of a mature ‘Redbug’ pitcher tube is ChrysanthemumCrimson (H.C.C. #824) and the lower quarter is Scheele's Green (H.C.C.#860). The veins on the upper pitcher form a distinct reticulate patternon the outside and are seen as a deep cast of Chrysanthumum Crimson(H.C.C. #824).

Variations in color: In full sunlight conditions, the pitcher colorstarts out as Scheele's Green (H.C.C. #860) suffused with a light castof Chrysanthemum Crimson (H.C.C. #824) in the immature pitcher, whichdevelops into a deeper cast of Chrysanthemum Crimson (H.C.C. #824) inthe mature pitcher. Similar to other species of Sarracenia, ‘Redbug’will not robustly develop distinct pitchers under light intensityconditions of 50% or less, and the leaves typically remain Scheele'sGreen (H.C.C. #860) suffused with a light cast of Chrysanthemum Crimson(H.C.C. #824) under these conditions. In the summer, the upperthree-quarters of the pitcher tube is Chrysanthemum Crimson (H.C.C.#824) and the lower quarter of the pitcher is Scheele's Green (H.C.C.#860) (FIG. 1). It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art thatplants grown in less than ideal lighting and moisture conditions willdisplay pitchers that are different in size, shape and color from thetypical specimen described here. In the winter, the entire pitcherretains a Garnet Brown (H.C.C. #918) color.

Reproductive structures: In the late spring (late April to mid-May inChapel Hill and Charlotte, N.C.) solitary, nodding flowers develop on ascape (stems with single flowers). There may be 1-3 scapes produced byeach growing point, a trait unique to the S. rubra complex. Flowers aretypically about 4-5 cm in diameter, and they naturally hang upside-downwith petals hanging down. A single flower has 5 sepals, 5 petals, manystamens, and 5 stigmas on an expanded umbrella-like style. The sepalsare thick textured (they persist until the seed pod ripens in latesummer; September in Chapel Hill and Charlotte, N.C.) 2.5 cm long and1.5 cm wide in the middle, tapering at each end to rounded tips. Theyare similar in color to the petals (Oxblood Red [H.C.C. #823], oftenwith some Scheele's Green [H.C.C. #860]). Below the 5 sepals are threesmall round-tipped Oxblood Red (H.C.C. #823) bracts (leaf-likestructures) that are 0.5-0.75 cm long. Flower petals are Rose Bengal(H.C.C. #25), Cardinal Red (H.C.C. #822) to Oxblood Red (H.C.C. #823) incolor. The petals are thin textured, 3 cm long, spatula-shaped; therounded terminal third is 1.5-2 cm wide, the middle portion is 0.5 cmwide, and the basal third is 1 cm wide. The margin is smooth to slightlywavy, and the surface is smooth. The flowers are typical of othermembers of the S. rubra ssp. rubra complex (which includes both parents)and cannot be used to separate sub-species or hybrids. Pollination bybumblebees results in numerous (up to 500) seeds produced in a roundedcapsule (seed pod) 1 cm wide. Each seed is 2 mm long and 1 mm wide,Yellow-ochre (H.C.C. #70) in color, with a rough surface texture. Theyare generally smaller than seeds of other Sarracenia species.

Comparison with other Sarracenia cultvars: Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ differsfrom most other tall species of Sarracenia in that it is more compact(maximum leaf height of 25 cm compared to 91-122 cm for other tall,slender species) and is more vigorous in its growth (producing multipleflushes of pitchers in a single growing season compared to a singleflush produced by most other species, when undisturbed). The pitcher ofS. rubra ssp. rubra typically has more Currant Red (H.C.C. #821)coloration or, often, Scheele's Green (H.C.C. #860) with Currant Red(H.C.C. #821) veins, and S. rubra ssp. wherryi typically is Scheele'sGreen (H.C.C. #860) with Currant Red (H.C.C. #821) veins, whereas thepitcher of Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ is a uniform deep cast of ChrysanthemumCrimson (H.C.C. #860) in mature, sun-grown leaves. In less light, themature ‘Redbug’ pitchers will have more Scheele's Green (H.C.C. #860)color with Currant Red (H.C.C. #821) veins rather than a solidChrysanthemum Crimson (H.C.C. #860) color. A typical ‘Redbug’ plantwill, like the S. rubra ssp. wherryi parent, produce continuous flushesof leaves in a single summer season versus other pitcher plants whichtypically produce a single flush in a season. It differs from its S.rubra subspecies rubra parent in many aspects (see TABLE 1),including: 1) it has a distinctly fatter tube, particularly towards itsapex (up to 2.5 cm in diameter verses 1.25 cm in diameter), 2) its hoodis three times wider, 3) it has a more clumped appearance, and 4) it hasa distinct coating of short fine hairs on the outer surface of the leafgiving it a ‘fuzzy’ feel and appearance. In addition to colordifferences, it may be distinguished from its other parent, S. rubrassp. wherryi, in having a hood that is more than 1.5 times wider and atube that is two times wider (TABLE 1). ‘Redbug’ also has a prominentfilament formed at the tip of the hood, typically held horizontally,whereas in the S. rubra ssp. wherryi parent the filament is generallyreflexed and held in a vertical position, and the filament is only verysmall or even absent in the S. rubra ssp. rubra parent. The fowers donot differ from any of the forms of S. rubra ssp. wherryi.

Sarracenia ‘Redbug’ differs from all other hybrids in its combination ofcolor, stature, texture, pitcher and hood shape, vigor and winterappearance.

TABLE 1 S. rubra ssp. S. rubra ssp. Characteristic rubra wherryiSarracenia ‘Redbug’ Leaf Length 140 mm 156 mm 190 mm Diameter of Leaf8.2 mm 9.0 mm 20.1 mm at Widest Point* Leaf Width to 0.059 0.058 0.106Leaf Length Ratio Hood Width 11.2 mm 17.3 mm 28.3 mm Hood Filamentminuscule to 1-2 mm reflexed, 1-2 mm prominent, (Tip) absent typicallyvertical typically horizontal All data are averaged from 10 randommeasurements collected from mature plants in December 2000 at the NorthCarolina Botanical Garden where the plants were grown in full sunlightoutdoors. Note that the data in this table are not typical of summerpitchers, although the relative sizes provided are helpful fordifferentiation of ‘Redbug’ from the parent plants. *not to be confusedwith orifice diameter.

What is claimed is:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Sarracenia plantnamed ‘Redbug’,